By Michael Schneider
Variety Editor at Large
Taylor Swift (with Vote.org), the Elton John AIDS Foundation, “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah,” “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” CNN, Vice Media, TheGrio and the SiriusXM podcast network are among the winners at the 3rd annual Anthem Awards, Variety has learned exclusively. Also, Matt Damon, Selma Blair, Kevin Bacon and Jesse Tyler Ferguson are among the celebrities set to be honored with special achievement awards.
The Webby Awards first launched the Anthem Awards in 2021 to pay tribute to social impact work around the world. The International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences announced this year’s honorees on Tueday morning. Nonprofits and foundations recognized include the ACLU, Planned Parenthood, IllumiNative, It Gets Better Project, World Central Kitchen, Decolonizing Wealth Project, AARP and UNICEF.
Other cultural figures honored include “On Purpose with Jay Shetty,” Megan Rapinoe, Lil Durk and Amazon Music. Media honorees also include ABC News, Capital B, Al Jazeera, Crooked Media, Dotdash Meredith, theSkimm and Hearst.
“The Anthem Awards were born out of the desire to amplify and celebrate the voices that are creating sustainable change and to inspire others to take action,” said Anthem Awards general manager Patricia McLoughlin. “In a year where so much is at stake, it is incredibly important to recognize impact work and celebrate the progress happening globally.”
Winners of the fan-voted Anthem Community Voice Awards included National Women’s Law Center, American Red Cross, World Wildlife Fund, Lush Cosmetics, Capital B, Freeform, Sesame Workshop, Defence for Children Palestine, Liquid I.V. and others.
This year’s Special Achievement Winners are:
Matt Damon – Anthem Special Achievement Award “for his career-long commitment to activism, philanthropy, the climate crisis, and access to clean water.”
Kevin Bacon – Anthem Entertainer of The Year Award “for his commitment to bringing people together, highlighting impactful causes from across the globe, and giving back.”
Selma Blair – Anthem Special Achievement Award “in recognition of her efforts to raise awareness and change the public perception of how disability is represented in the media.”
Jesper Brodin – Anthem Vision Award “to recognize his influence and leadership at IKEA and Ingka, improving policies to reduce the company’s carbon footprint while serving as a model for sustainable innovation in the industry.”
Misty Copeland – Anthem Special Achievement Award “for breaking boundaries in ballet and her commitment to expanding opportunities and equality for the next generation of dancers and artists.”
Aurora James – Anthem New Icon Award “for leading the way as a purpose-driven brand and promoting the inclusion of Black-owned businesses.”
Jesse Tyler Ferguson – Anthem Special Achievement Award “for his advocacy work in the LGBTQ+ community, support for cancer research, and commitment to making a positive impact in the world.”
Leon Ford – Anthem Community Impact Award “for his work to promote racial justice, holistic wellness, and sustainable and actionable police reform.”
Anthem judges included: Heather Dowdy, director of product accessibility, Netflix; Alex Amouyel, president & CEO, Newman’s Own Foundation; Noel Kinder, chief sustainability officer, Nike; Shaniqua McClendon, vice president of politics, Crooked Media/Vote Save America; Rawle Andrews Jr., Esq., executive director, American Psychiatric Association Foundation; Alison Moore, CEO, Comic Relief US; Christina Lang, vice president of North American marketing, Mozilla; Michelle Waring, steward for sustainability and everyday good, Tom’s of Maine; and more.
Speeches from every winner, including special achievement honorees, can be found at anthemawards.com/winners/.
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